I was wondering about the start sequence. Doesn't Tom Hanks "The clock is running" come too early? Shouldn't the lockdown latches and all the arms disconnect before the mission clock starts? Doesn't that clock start at first upward movement?
Yes, as Jason Thompson said, there are many inaccuracies in that sequence. Here are all those I can think of:
The F-1 ignition plume appearance is not accurate; the movie makes them look like CO
2 extinguishers because that's exactly what they were. The real startup sequence began with a stream of LOX pouring down followed by an expanding red and black fireball as the hypergolic ignition fluid enters the combustion chamber, immediately followed by the fuel. And they are staggered in pairs at 100 ms intervals, not started simultaneously.
Most of the swing arms retracted simultaneously (and much more quickly) at liftoff except for one S-IC arm that retracted at T-15 sec.
Ignition actually starts at T-8.9 sec; liftoff (and clock starting) actually occurs at T=0.
I didn't see the 1.5 degree tower avoidance yaw maneuver (admittedly this is very subtle).
Cars are visible in the Pad 39A parking lot - for a launch the pad would be completely cleared (the 2nd unit helicopter that captured the background footage flew on a normal workday).
The paint pattern was not correct for Apollo 13.
Mattingly's view of the pad is from the west (launch tower on the left) when he is supposedly parked on the beach east of the pad -- where no one would be allowed during a real launch. And in reality, he was in Houston.
Condensation is seen streaming off the LM adapter, where there were no cryogenic fuels to cool the outside surface.
I
don't see ice falling off the S-IVB when I believe it did.
Lovell has his hand on the abort handle at times. I don't think he would have put his hand anywhere near it unless he had decided to abort.
I think the solar illumination angle on the stack after the pitch program starts is incorrect, but I'll have to check that. It should be from the camera's (south) side.
The announcer should have read the actual words of the KSC Public Affairs Officer - it's not like they were hard to obtain.
The engines actually light up only once (admittedly this is artistic license).
The ground call "we see your BPC clear" comes early; the BPC comes off with the launch escape tower. Yet sunlight floods the cabin through the uncovered windows at the right time.
The engine status lights go
out normally and
light (continuously) when there is an engine problem.
Lovell hits the LES FIRE button to jettison the LES. I think that's for commanding manual LES (not jettison motor) ignition if the sequencer doesn't do it automatically after the translation handle is turned counterclockwise. I think the LES was jettisoned manually by the CDR, but I'd have to look up the correct switch.
The S-II and S-IVB plumes are nearly invisible in space. Just a dim blue glow inside the nozzle.
At the same time, they got an amazing amount right. The CSM hardware, suits and helmets were completely authentic, and the crew is in the correct seats. The right checklists are on the panel, the right program is running on the computer but I'm not sure the 8-ball display is correct (can someone check that?) The F-1 plumes have the dark section from the fuel-rich turbopump exhaust. The F-1 plumes expand and creep up along the tail of the rocket as the ambient air pressure decreases. The roll/pitch program calls and abort mode calls are correct. Lovell turns off the EDS at the correct time. The solid-fuel ullage motors on the S-II fire a split second before the J-2 engines light up. Certainly no other fictionalized portrayal of an Apollo launch even comes close, not that there are many.
